FTX's Bankruptcy Filing and Proof of Reserves

The Coin Bureau Podcast: Crypto Without the Hype

30-11-2022 • 46 mins

It’s back to FTX this week sadly, as the exchange’s collapse continues to dominate the crypto headlines.

Today, you’ll hear about the company’s recent bankruptcy filing, which revealed just how terribly it and its sister company Alameda Research were being run behind the scenes, by people who were unfit to be running anything bigger than a lemonade stand.

The filing makes for some pretty extraordinary reading and reveals just how much work needs to be done to try and clear up the mess that Sam Bankman-Fried and his idiotic colleagues left in their wake. This clearing up will take a long time and that means it will take an even longer time for anyone to get their money back - assuming enough money can be found, that is. Have a listen to get the lowdown.

Another consequence of the FTX fiasco is that other crypto exchanges are rushing to provide proof of reserves or PoR. This is designed to reassure their users that they do indeed have enough crypto on hand to honour any and all withdrawals, should they be required to. After FTX, people want to know they’re using an exchange which is solvent and can prove itself to be so, hence why the second part of today’s episode is also well worth your time. This is a look at what proof of reserves actually means and to what extent the top exchanges out there are providing it. There’s also the question to consider of whether the time for decentralised exchanges may be nigh.

We hope you enjoy the show.

Producer for iHeartMedia: Noel Brown

Editor: Semir Mutapcic

Theme music composed by: Noel Brown

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